Image 16 of Kentucky Alumnus, vol. 72, no. 3, Fall 2001

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· By Linda Perry ‘
I ay Larson is no stranger to the Governor Martha Layne Collins ap- Commonwealth’s Attorney’s office also
rsh realities of crime, having pointed Larson the Fayette County has gained a reputation for its myriad
, 29 years of experience with in- Commonwealth’s Attorney in 1985. outreach programs aimed at improving
I vestigating and prosecuting criminal Since then, Larson has been elected to the quality of life in the community and
l cases. He started his career in 1972 as four six-year terms, the last three times protecting victims.
j the Paducah city prosecutor, and be- with no opposition. Qver the course of Parents Set Example
tween 1974 and 1985 he served as the those 16 years his office has prosecuted L H UK md who G med a
assistant deputy attorney general for all criminal cases in Fayette Circuit b haqsoln d g. h. t Q 1966 d
the state, investigating and prosecuting Court and overseen grand juries con- ajc cdor S egrigé?) IS Q? m h an
l high profile cases throughout Kentucky. vened in the county The gcfllznscgsgggcc to Eligtglxsg-gg ligvay
l
1 , _ Z, , ...,.,., ¤ parents set regarding honesty, integrity,
Q -. n , no cutting comers, and humor. LarS0¤’S
j [ Y ’ late father, Robert E Larson, was a ca-
1 ” . 1 _ e~·i __ —- , 1 reer Air Force officer and the family
- { *"'" — I traveled extensively in the U.S. and
c , J`?" L"` · _ J. j ` 1 overseas, including France, where
wt ._ 1 , --- T"» asia *2 1 . . QQ]! ¤· i** · Larson spent three years at the Ameri-
i V “ if t _ . We can High School in Paris, later graduat-
··*·*·*·· 1 ·~ 1 1 - 11 ” _ V 1 A ` ing in Michigan. When the senior
. sq, . E, _ ~ 1 Larson retired from the service, he
—, Yiiij ;_ , moved his family to Lexington where
A V 1 he worked in the registrar’s office at
V 1 4 UK.
_ _ _ "I have always been a believer in
i‘""""'"‘ ‘ 1 1 A people being responsible for their be-
.» A A o . " - _ V V havior and people suffering conse-
. l _ _ · _ .. ‘° V quences if they break the law. "
J L With this as a basis, Larson, who also
· » j ‘ has been an adjunct assistant professor
A at the UK College of Law since 1988,
‘ has established clear-cut guidelines in
his career.
... ~ , _ ' "I have three rules that govern the
I i ' operation of this office — and this is my
I R dad talking to me —— you treat every-
Q body the same under the same facts
;»~ situation and you can expect to be
treated the same; you be responsible for
- » your behavior; and if you violate the
. law or the rules, be prepared to suffer
the consequences. That’s how we func-
gb . h N tion. I -
m H 4 x p`$g__ SBEKIIIQ JIISUCB
E k ° F Larson and his staff of 26 employees,
‘ E 5 T, or . rf ¢r’~¥g§;_ ‘ including 16 prosecuting attorneys, have
g · jj fr _ A-j t A ‘ ’ A, Q g prosecuted their share of sensational 1
g QQ? °`_. °*`— ~ Q1 gg;. ,1 felony cases over the years, some result- 1
•‘?,i{·t,_G_{* ·_ E ·‘ .' `Z " it gig in convicted felons receiving the y
' " * ” eath penalty.'l`he law sets out the cir-
cumstances under which the Common- ,
14 KENTUCKY ALUMNUS